Agra

Agra is the city of the Taj Mahal, in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, India on the banks of the river Yamuna. It is 378 kilometres (235 mi) west of the state capital, Lucknow, 206 kilometres (128 mi) south of the national capital New Delhi, 58 kilometres (31 mi) south from Mathura and 125 kilometres (78 mi) north of Gwalior.

Agra has three UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort in the city and Fatehpur Sikri nearby.

There are also many other buildings and tombs from Agra's days of glory as the capital of the Mughal Empire. The city has little else to recommend it. Pollution, especially smog and litter, is rampant and travellers are pestered by swarms of touts and hawkers at every monument, mosque, temple or palace. That said, the sites are some of the wonders of the world and no trip to India is complete without at least one visit to the Taj.

How to Reach Agra?

Agra is 200 km southeast of Delhi and is one of three stops on India's Golden Triangle (Agra-Delhi-Jaipur). Agra is also very well connected via rail and road with other nearby cities and tourist destinations.

By Plane
Service to Agra's Kheria Airport is limited due to the airport's primary function as an air force base. Currently the city is served by Air India.

By Train
Agra is on the main train line on the Delhi-[Mumbai]] (Bombay) and Delhi-Chennai routes. There are numerous train options connecting Agra with these cities every day. Some eastbound trains from Delhi stop in Agra, so direct connections to points in Eastern India (including Kolkata) are available. There are close to 20 trains to Delhi every day, and at least three or four to both Mumbai and Chennai.
There are three stations in Agra:

Agra Cantt (Station Code : AGC) is the main railway station and lies southwest of the Taj and Agra Fort, both of which are a short ride from the station by car, auto-rickshaw or cycle rickshaw.

Agra Fort station (Station Code : AF) near Agra Fort, is infrequently serviced by the interstate express trains. The station serves trains to the east (Kanpur, Gorakhpur, Kolkata) and some of these trains also stop at Agra Cantt.

Raja Ki Mandi (Station Code : RKM) is a small station in the city center. Some of the trains which stop at Agra Cantt also stop here. The station has a laid-back and lazy atmosphere, but springs into life with the arrival of the Intercity Express and Taj Express trains.

Some Important Routes

Delhi to Agra - Close to 20 trains connect Delhi and Agra each day with journey times varying from 2 to 5 hours. Delhi to Agra by road - A new highway is being constructed from Greater Noida to Agra. The journey would take 2 to 3 hours and should be very popular among tourists as the road standards will be ultra modern.

Agra to Jaipur - The journey to Jaipur (Station Code : JP) takes around 4 hours on train #2988 which leaves Agra Fort Railway Station at 6:25 PM and reaches Jaipur at around 10:20PM. Also, train #2965 from Agra Cantonment to Jaipur departs at 5:40 PM and arrives at 10:15 PM for â‚¹300 in an air conditioned coach.

Mumbai to Agra - The journey to Agra Cant (Station Code : AGC) takes around 23 hours on train 12137 which leaves Mumbai CSMT Railway Station at 7:35 PM and reaches Agra at around 5:55PM second day.

Agra to Mumbai - The journey to Mumbai (Station Code : CSMT) takes around 23 hours on train 12138 which leaves Agra cantt Railway Station at 8:30 AM and reaches Mumbai at around 7:30 AM second day.

The Luxury train or Palace on Wheels stops in Agra.

By Bus
A number of buses connect Agra with Delhi. It takes around 4-5 hours to reach Agra by bus.

Idgah Bus Stand is the primary bus stand for travelling towards Rajasthan/Madhya Pradesh, in the heart of the city, 8 km from the Taj. The well run Rajasthan Government (RSRTC) bus to Jaipur (roughly one bus per hour) departs from Hotel Sakura near Idgah bus stand. There's a small ticket booth outside the hotel.

ISBT at Transport Nagar, 12 km from the Taj, is an inter state bus terminal. Most intercity buses pass through here, except for buses originating from Idgah Bus Stand going to Rajasthan.

By Road

From Delhi: NH2, a modern divided highway, connects the 200 km distance from Delhi to Agra. The drive is typically 4-5 hours, a large chunk of which includes navigating the clogged roads around Delhi to get to the highway. The primary access points to the highway is along Mathura Road in Delhi, but if you're coming from South Delhi or Delhi Airport, it is easier to take Aurobindo Marg (Mehrauli Road) and then work your way up to NH2 via Tughlakabad.

From Jaipur: National Highway 11, a four lane highway, connects Agra with Jaipur via the bird sanctuary town of Bharatpur. The distance of around 255 Km can be covered in around 4-6 hours.

From Gwalior: A distance of around 120 km, takes around 1.5 hours on National highway 3 (Agra- Mumbai Highway)

From Lucknow / Kanpur: NH2, a modern highway, continues on to Kanpur (285km, 5 hours) and from there to points east ending in Kolkata. From Kanpur, NH25 heads for the city of Lucknow (90 km, 2 hours).